GUIDING PRINCIPLES

1. Students will demonstrate familiarity with the principal definitions and theorems of primary areas of mathematics.  (i) Students will demonstrate an appreciation of the role of precise definitions and formal mathematical structures in mathematical argument. (ii) Students will understand the basic nature of proof in mathematics, by a) being able to recognize a valid mathematical proof and b) being able to construct valid mathematical proofs and arguments.
2. Students will develop quantitative problem-solving skills and cultivate facility with and appreciation for mathematical and statistical thinking and expression. (i) Students will demonstrate understanding of and facility with mathematical computations, algorithms, and problem-solving strategies. (ii) Students will develop and demonstrate the ability to communicate mathematical material, both a) in written form and b) orally.
3. Students will be able to utilize the power of mathematical vocabulary, abstract tools, and computational techniques in the formulation and analysis of appropriate problems across subdisciplinary boundaries within mathematics, in other portions of the curriculum, and in real-world situations. (i) Students will be able to complete a) basic problems as well as b) longer, connected problems requiring synthesis. (ii) Students will be able to solve “word problems” by applying mathematical thought to various contexts and recognizing connections between mathematics/statistics and the outside world.  (iii) Students will be able to apply technology appropriately to quantitative problems. (iv) Students will develop an appreciation for mathematical utility, beauty, and elegance.

The Department of Mathematics and Statistics values, embraces, and celebrates diversity in our student, faculty and staff populations.  We strive to create a community built upon mutual respect, equity, and inclusion.  We recognize and value the perspectives of individuals from diverse races, genders, abilities, orientations, identities, socioeconomic groups, faiths, cultures, and other backgrounds.  These perspectives bring a wealth of ideas and experiences to bear on our classes, our disciplines, and the functioning of our Department. Thus, we are committed to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in our Department and our curriculum.  We are also committed to listening, to learning, and to implementing new strategies within our Department to encourage and assist all community members in their ability to explore, grow, and flourish.   We seek to remove cultural and systemic barriers and other obstacles to full representation of, and participation by, people from underrepresented groups, especially people of color and women, particularly in the highest ranks of our faculty. We recognize that our actions at the Departmental level have an impact on the climate of the University and society at large, and we use this knowledge to motivate and guide our efforts.

Our Department is committed to anti-racist action and has been active in this work since the 1990s.  Members of our Department have supported Black Lives Matter student activism on campus from the beginning, and we formed our Department Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee in response.  We have:
 

• updated our Department Mission to incorporate diversity and the betterment of society;
• significantly increased the representation of BIPOC on our faculty from 8% to 24% (from Fall 2017 to Fall 2020), although we still aspire to hire more Black and Latinx faculty, and want our diversity to continue to improve in the upper ranks;
•  held a DEI training related to Hiring for Villanova’s Future for all members of our Department in 2020;
• adopted a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Statement and committed to listening, modifying our practices and curriculum, and working to remove cultural and systemic barriers to diversity, equity, and inclusion;
• set a goal to get input and suggestions from our undergraduate and graduate students about DEI issues within the Department;
• been working with the Diversity Skit team and the Villanova Institute for Teaching and Learning (VITAL) since last year to create a workshop for our Department to become aware of the kinds of things we might do unconsciously as faculty that make students, staff, and other community members feel uncomfortable, not welcome, and not affirmed, and thus to make changes in our practices and curriculum.